Preparing High School Students for College Success

1. Preparing High School Students for College Success  June 8, 2009 Successful By Design: 2009 High School Summit / High Schools that Work State Conference Austin, TX

2. Examine the challenges students face in the first year of collegeIdentify factors creating challengesReview research on college student successConsider strategies for preparing students for the college transitionSuggest available resources for educators

3. Why is the Transition to College So Difficult? Myths or reality?? We made it, they should be able to as well Smart high school will do well in college Only at-risk students need help in college All ability levels are challenged

4. Cultural Transitions FY is not grade 13 Cultural differences between high school and college exist Osmosis is not effective!

5. Predictable Phases in the First-Year Student Experience Pre-enrollment Phase Euphoria and excitement Anticipation Expectations formed and plans constructed

6. Transition Phase Arrival / beginning of classes New freedoms Learning routines and setting behavior patterns Facing academic challenges

7. Establishment Phase Newness wears off Academic realities learned Help-seeking decisions are considered Balancing of freedom and responsibility

8. New Beginnings Phase Return for the second term Academic realities learned Heightened interest in study skills and academic majors

9. Making Commitments Phase Independent decision-making Time and effort choices Career/major decision-making Future planning

10. Success vs Struggles Think of two students #1 � a high achieving college-bound student #2 � a marginal college-bound student

11. Personal responsibility Self management Time management Commitment Self control Stress management Motivation Resilience General mood Optimism / self-authorship

12. Emotional Intelligence Reuven Bar-On�s EQ-I model Intrapersonal Interpersonal Adaptability Stress Management General Mood

13. Predicting Collegiate Success Academic knowledge and cognitive abilities as criteria for collegiate admissions and scholarship competition Emotional intelligence / softer skills as persistence and success factors

14. IQ vs EQ IQ - set at birth, changes very little over time EI � developmental, EI skills can be taught / developed This is good news indeed!

15. High school teachers and counselors may have more influence on students� college success than previously imagined. What can you do to impact student success? To develop EI skills in students?

16. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

17. Research on First-Year Student Success Institutional Fit (Tinto and others) Congruence between student and institutional goals and values. Can students needs be met at their institution? Can the fit be cultivated?

18. Social and Academic Integration (Tinto, Pascarella and Terenzini, Light, others) Learning and retention increase when what students learn outside the classroom is incorporated inside the classroom Relevance and integration

19. Involvement and Community (Astin, Kuh, Sanford, Light) Time on task Link between quality and quantity of involvement and student performance and satisfaction Positive interaction with peers creates sense of belonging and increased satisfaction

20. Engagement (Kuh et al, NSSE) An extension of the work on involvement and community Purposeful, intentional, and connected Links cognitive and affective dimensions

21. Learning (Astin, Kuh, Tinto, others) Is key to success Is root of persistence and success Book learning and life skills learning are both critical

22. Institutional Practices Supporting College Student Success New student orientation Summer bridge programs Programs directed at micro-populations Special welcoming events Convocations First-year / summer reading programs

23. Institutional Practices Supporting Student Success First-year seminars Learning communities Service-learning initiatives Early alert programs Parent programs / initiatives / events / newsletters

24. Potential Practices for Helping High School Students Prepare for the College Transition What can you do structurally and programmaticly??

25. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

26. Potential Practices for Helping High School Students Prepare for the College Transition Establish linkages with colleges and universities where your students continue their education. Define first-year student success and share with students and families Communicate high expectations

27. Engage alumni in programs to prepare seniors for college Educate parents and families on the student experience Encourage and expect participation in proven institutional programs Communicate directly to students with developmentally appropriate messages

28. In summary�..Using What We Know Consider student needs, characteristics, and phases Incorporate existing institutional support structures Think and plan developmentally (lessons from Maslow) Continually evaluate, change, and renew efforts

29. Selected Resources Periodicals Gardner, J.N., Siegel, M.J., and Cutright, M. Focusing on the First Year Student. AGB Priorities, Fall 2001, No. 17. Hunter, M. S. & Gahagan, J. (2003, September/October). It takes a year. About Campus, 8(4), 31-32. Peer Review: Successful Transitions to College Through First-Year Programs, AAC&U, Summer 2006, 8(3).

30. Selected Resources Books Kuh, G. D., Kinzie, J., Schuh, J. H., & Whitt, E. J. (2005). Student success in college: Creating conditions that matter. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Light, R. J. (2001). Making the most of college: Students speak their minds. Cambridge, Massachusetts, and London, England: Harvard University Press. Pascarella, E. T. & Terenzini, P.T. (2005) How college affects students: A Third Decade of Research, Volume 2. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Upcraft, M. L., Gardner, J. N., & Barefoot, B. O. (Eds.), (2004). Challenging and supporting the first-year student: A handbook for improving the first Year of college. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

31. Selected Resources Electronic Resources www.sc.edu/fye www.fyfoundations.org/ www.gseis.ucla.edu/heri/ http://www.ed.psu.edu/cshe/

32. Selected Resources for Parents and Families Empowering Parents of First-Year College Students: A Guide for Success A Guide for Families of Commuter Students: Supporting Your Student�s Success A Family Guide to Academic Advising Available from the National Resource Center for the First Year Experience and Students in Transition http://www.sc.edu/fye/publications/catalog/ffys/index.html

33. Selected Resources Events 22nd International Conference on the First-Year Experience, July 20-23, 2009, Montreal 29th Annual Conference on The First-Year Experience, February 6-10, 2010, Denver www.sc.edu/fye

34. Contact Information Mary Stuart Hunter Assistant vice Provost and Executive Director National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in in Transition University of South Carolina Columbia, SC 29208 803.777.4761 shunter@sc.edu